To all readers, may the New Year bring you all you wish for, and for all of us, may it bring peace, a measure of prosperity, amity and understanding.

By all accounts this will be a tough year for everyone, may we mind a way to restore a sense of community that crosses class, religious, ethnic, and other divides. But not at the expense of recognizing there are things important enough to require fighting for.

I apologize, without any mental reservation or equivocation, to those I have offended among my readers this past year. As well as to other bloggers or ordinary citizens who’ve taken offense from anything I’ve said or done to them. To officialdom, well, that’s the way the cookie crumbles but I will try to be more positive in 2009.

We will probably continue to disagree in the coming months but yes, let us remember to agree to disagree when called for. Better one day red than three days blue, but best of all is finding a way to be tolerant of each other’s opinions while remaining intolerant of those who would use force to blunt the power of public opinion.

I thank you for your readership, the time you take to express your opinions, and special thanks go to those who drop by and read, but who don’t comment.

Happy New Year to you as well, Mr. Quezon. You do not have to apologize if your opinions clash with those of others. You created this blog to express your opinions and not to please other people. If there are some parties who do not agree with what you believe in, then that is not your problem anymore. While they are free to disagree with your views, it doesn’t mean that they have the right to curtail your freedom of self-expression.

Happy New Year! 2009 could be a very historically important year. While there are many dangers and pitfalls lurking ahead, it could also be a time for bringing out the best in the world’s leadership. While great disasters may occur, historically important changes and developments may also happen.

Asked about the 2010 general elections during an interview with reporters at the Mansion House in Baguio City, Arroyo said: “You know, I don’t want to talk about 2010. That’s far away. I want to talk about what I’m doing, what I have to do now.”

“Politics is not foremost on my mind. If I were always thinking about politics, I would not have been able to build all these roads,” the President told the Baguio-based media, adding, “Let’s talk economics, not politics.”

Asked about the 2010 general elections during an interview with reporters at the Mansion House in Baguio City, Arroyo said: Ã¢â‚¬Å“You know, I donÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t want to talk about 2010. ThatÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s far away. I want to talk about what IÃ¢â‚¬â„¢m doing, what I have to do now.Ã¢â‚¬Â…GMA

How hard is it to say ,,.

“I WILL RETIRE IN 2010. THAT’S THE ONLY THING I CAN DO. IT IS MANDATED IN THE CONSTITUTION, AND THAT’S FINAL!”

There is much uncertainty for the New Year. What is certain, however, is that governments around the world will preside over the biggest Ponzi scheme history has ever known. This will consist of taking money from generations yet unborn in order to salvage the economic mess under this generation.

Unfortunately, a truly massive stimulus is the only way to rescue the world from a deep and disastrous depression.

Carl, regarding your first paragraph. Economist Paul Krugman addresses that in his column. In part, he says:

Right now thereÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s intense debate about how aggressive the United States government should be in its attempts to turn the economy around. Many economists, myself included, are calling for a very large fiscal expansion to keep the economy fromgoing into free fall. Others, however, worry about the burden that large budget deficits will place on future generations.

But the deficit worriers have it all wrong. Under current conditions, thereÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s no trade-off between whatÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s good in the short run and whatÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s good for the long run; strong fiscal expansion would actually enhance the economyÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s long-run prospects.

As he points out, and as you accept in your second paragraph, there is no tradeoff. If business and consumers don’t (or cannot) spend, government has to generate demand even if it means fiscal deficits.

“It only shows that Gloria doesnÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t think that way you do and thats it. You can hate her or love her for that. period.”…rego

It is OK if she is like us, ordinary Filipinos and we are discussing things which are of insignificant effect to the country. However, this is not the case. She is the top civil servant, the top “elected” official being paid by us, the voters. It is her primary duty in all her waking hours to serve the Republic, the Filipinos. Every possible problems should be solved for the well being of the Filipinos. “PERIOD” is not an option, she should be the leader in knowing the problems, in trying to solve the problems and if not, she should step down voluntarily ’cause her reason for being there on top is “useless”. And for us the voters, “PERIOD” is not an option either. We should be vigilant at all times. One of our duties is to make sure that civil servants, are doing their job properly otherwise we should act accordingly based on the provisions of the constitution as in free press, etc.

For the Republic’s well being, it SHOULD NOT BE… you don’t like what I do, it is up to you to hate me or love me.Period.

There must be consequence for all the things we do, especially for the elected civil servants.

I saw Martin Feldstein, Ronald Reagan’s chief economic adviser and a renowned conservative economist from Harvard, on CNBC the other day. Even Feldstein is resigned to the fact that only massive spending by governments will be able to reverse an economic collapse. In this he was unequivocal, and totally agreed with progressive economists like Paul Krugman. And when Feldstein was confronted with the conservative argument that Franklin Roosevelt didn’t rescue the U.S. economy via his New Deal spending and that it was only World War II that finally led the U.S. into recovery, Feldstein retorted that FDR’s New Deal programs actually allocated too little for a stimulus package. It should have been much more massive.

So, following the example of Alan Greenspan, conservative economists are now implicitly admitting that the Reagan voodoo economics of self-regulation and tax cuts for the wealthy were all wrong. All this Ayn Rand philosophy of individuality and as little presence of government and regulations in everyday lives has been a hoax which, to my mind, was perpetrated and encouraged by wealthy Americans so that they would pay as little taxes as possible.

Too bad the ordinary Joe Blow, like the ridiculous Joe the Plumber, really bought into that pack of lies and now he’s the guy out of a home, out of a job and has his savings wiped out.

This is my first time here. I would say let’s just agree to disagree (what a joy!) on certain things, pick up one’s brains to widen our perspective. After all, that’s why blogging continues to exist, because of people who continue to stir our minds on different topics.

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Happy New Year to all. May The Almighty Father inspires leaders throughout the world to think and implement programs that are useful in improving our lives towards a peaceful and progressive countries. I wish that all of us will posses a humble heart worthy in God’s blessings.